October PPMs Show More Competitive Format Race.

For the first time during Nielsen’s 13 surveys covering the past year, no format claims four or more market-leading stations in the 20 non-embedded PPM markets reporting on Days 1 and 2 of the October survey (covering Sept. 16-Oct. 14).

News/talk did the trick in every survey from May through September, while adult contemporary pulled it off from November 2025 until August 2026. In October, however, AC outlets landed on top in just two markets, down one from September’s three, while news/talk’s total slipped from four to three.

The only other format with four stations at number-one during any survey over the past year is classic hits, which managed it just once, in May’s survey.

For Days 1 and 2 in these 20 markets, the leaderboard shows three wins for news/talk, classic hits, sports and soft AC, with two each for AC, hot AC and urban AC, and one apiece for news, classic rock, CHR and contemporary Christian.

Please note that rankings do not include stations owned by Cumulus Media, which is in the midst of a re-negotiation of its contract with Nielsen which expired Dec. 31, 2025.

Top-ranked American University news/talk WAMU’s share keeps growing and keeps extending its lead over Hubbard all-news WTOP, DC’s runner-up since May. From July, that lead has steadily increased, up 130%, while WAMU’s share increased 12%, breaking into 12-share territory in October’s survey for the first time since June 2025. As for the rest of the top five, the only station with a share gain is iHeartMedia AC WASH, moving up from fifth place to fourth.

For the first time since the Matt “Matty in the Morning” Siegel era, iHeartMedia CHR “Kiss 108” WXKS-FM is Boston’s number-one station, with a 0.4 edge over news/talk WBUR, which led for all of Q3 2026. Two top-five mainstays move back into the region, Audacy AC “Magic 106.7” WMJX and Beasley Media Group’s “98.5 The Sports Hub” WBZ-FM. 

While the order of Miami’s top five stays the same from September, the market’s leader, Cox Media Group soft AC “Easy 93.1” WFEZ’s share is up for a third consecutive survey, for a 41% lift and its highest share since May 2023. Adding a full share point, WFEZ takes a 1.3 lead over Univision Spanish AC “Amor 107.5” WAMR, which also gains to hit a 7 share for the first time since February 2024.

Non-commercial news/talk KUOW-FM’s current winning streak is now just two wins short of its last, with 10 straight surveys at the top since January vs. last year’s 12 that put it on top for all of 2025 except the Holiday book. KUOW widens its lead over Bonneville “Seattle Sports 710” KIRO to 2.5 share points, while iHeartMedia classic hits “95.7 The Jet” sticks at third and Hubbard CHR “Movin’ 92.5” KQMV, at fourth, returns to the top five for the first time since February 2024.

Hubbard classic rock KSLX holds onto its lead by a full share point, while iHeartMedia’s AC KESZ and talk KFYI stay at second and third. Hubbard rocker KUPD moves up to fourth, while news/talk KJZZ and iHeartMedia country KNIX tie for fifth.

It’s now 10 wins in a row for Audacy sports “97.1 The Ticket” WXYT-FM, 1.5 ahead of iHeartMedia AC WNIC, which adds 1.5 share points as it jumps from fifth to second place. Top five regulars Audacy country sister WYCD, iHeartMedia urban AC sister “Mix 92.3” WMXD and Audacy classic hits WOMC line up at 3-4-5.

iHeartMedia sports “K-Fan” KFXN not only grabs its fourth consecutive victory, it does it in grand style hitting a 14.1 share, up 3.7 from September for a 36% gain. “K-Fan” is 6.6 points up on Minnesota Public Radio news/talk KNOW, itself adding 1.2 points as it moves from third to second. Also noteworthy in the top five, iHeart CHR KDWB makes its first appearance in the region since January 2025.

Make it nine straight for CMG soft AC “105.5 The Dove” WDUV, which marks three surveys in a row with share growth, up 8% since July. WDUV keeps a 2.4-point lead over Radio Training Network contemporary Christian “The Joy FM” WCIE, up steadily since June for a 43% boost for a best-since- January 8.3 share.

Bonneville AC KOSI racks up a sixth survey at the top, now 1.7 points ahead of country sister KYGO, moving from a tie for third to second-ranked. Audacy hot AC “Alice 105.9” KALC, KSE Radio Ventures classic hits “Kool 105” KXKL and iHeartMedia adult alternative KBCO come in at third, fourth and fifth, respectively. 

Note to the Padres: there’s always next year. The team’s deep-but-not-deep-enough postseason run, heard on flagship “97.3 The Fan” KWFN, gave the station a 1.5-share-point boost from September for a stronger second-place showing behind classic hits sister “Sunny 98.1” KXSN, which notches a seventh straight win. Moving into the top three, also with a share gain, is iHeartMedia hot AC “Star 94.1” KMYI.

It’s a 10th straight win for Urban One urban AC “Magic 95.9” WWIN-FM, hanging on with a 0.8 lead over longtime runner-up, Audacy AC “Today's 101.9” WLIF, up 0.6 as the holidays get closer. Urban One urban contemporary sister “92Q Jams” WERQ and news/talk WYPR stay at third and fourth.

While making a rare appearance at the top rung, Gateway Creative Broadcasting contemporary Christian “99.1 Joy FM” KLJY ties iHeartMedia classic hits KLOU for the honors, both just a tenth of a point ahead of Hubbard heritage rocker KSHE. Moving up 0.9 to break into the top five is Audacy AC KEZK, also poised to grow during the holidays.